Ap er i tiv o (= Ap er it i f ) :< <I Cr os tin i alla Gia rdin i era>>

An ti pas to (= Appe t i z er ) :< <I l Pan et ton e - N on Pane tton e > >

Prim i (= F irs t c ou rs e ) :< <I Capp e ll etti in Br odo > >

< <I Mal taglia ti al Ragù d i Po lpo > >S e c ond o (= S e c ond cours e ) :

< <L ‘Aris t a in Sa lsa di Ca stagn e > >C on t o rno (= Sid e dish)

< <L ’Insalata mi s ta di Radicchi > >D o lci (= Dess er t ) :

< < La Cas e t ta di Bis co t t i > >< <La T or ta di A ran c e c aram ellat e > >

< <Il Mulsum > >

La V ialla ’s C h r i s tma s Menu

<<I Crostini alla Giardiniera>>(= Cr os tini w i th Gia rdini era )

Ingr ed i en ts for 4 pe op l e : 4 slic es of h om emad e Tus can br ead 1 jar of Da tt e rini Tomato es in “Giardini era” 2 tabl espo ons o f low- fa t yogurt 1 ta bl esp oon o f chopp ed parsle y 1 tabl e spoon o f ex t ra virgin oliv e oil Sal t

Drain the con t en ts o f th e jar in a s train er, rins e th em bri e fl y t o r em ov e t h e brin e , th en put th e oliv es t o on e sid e for lat er and coars e ly b l end the r es t un t i l t h e mix tur e is r ela tiv ely th i ck . Add 2 tabl esp o ons of low-fat yo gu r t , t h e extra v irgin ol iv e o il , a pin c h o f sal t , th e ch opp ed pa rs l ey and s tir . Spr ead t his mix tur e on s li c e s o f t oast ed Tuscan br ead , d e c ora t e w i th t h e olives and s erve t h e “ Cr os t in i alla Giardiniera ” with ap eri t if s .

<<Il Panettone - Non Panettone>> (= Pan e t ton e n on-Pan e t t one )

This i s a savou ry v ersion o f t h e t rad i t iona l ca k e f rom Milan ( or ra th e r , t ha t was b orn in Mi lan and has “m igra t ed ” all ov e r I taly and a b road as w ell) . It i s mad e with a dough simila r to tha t o f th e class i c , sw e e t Pane t t on e , bu t wi t hou t candi ed p e el and rais ins . Aft e r baking , the “non-Pan e t t one ” is th i c kl y sl ic ed and fi ll ed , l ik e a s eri es o f sandw i c h es , wi th vari ou s in gr edi en ts a c c o rdin g t o t h e taste , imagina ti on and origins of w h o ev e r prepares i t . Usually t h e f i ll ings are al t e rnat ed so tha t , with e a ch sli c e , bo th e y e and pala t e can enjoy al l the c o l ours and flavours .

F or fi l ling numb er 1 : Tuna sau c e 130 g tuna ( drained of i ts oil or br in e ) 3 t abl espo ons o f ma y onnaise 15 g cap ers 50 g “Giardin i e ra ” (mix ed v eg e tab l es in v in egar)

For f illing num b er 2 : Salmon sauc e 100 g bu t t er 150 g sm ok e d salmon

F or fill ing numb er 3 : Sal t cod and y ogur t sauc e 100 g s oak ed salt cod 80 g Gr e e k yogur t ½ clov e of garl i c 1 tab l esp o on o f extra virgin o liv e o il 1 tab lespoon of grated l emon rind (fr om an untreated lemon) 1 t easp o on o f l em on jui c e

F or fill ing numb e r 4 :Prawn co c ktail150 g prawns 3 tab l esp oons o f may onna is e 2 tabl espo on s o f k et chup sa l t

Th e fil lings, for this spe cial o c casion , ar e all ra th er “f estiv e ” ; how ever you can us e a ll kinds of cold m ea t , ch e e s e (both fr esh and ma tur e) , fr i t ta tas , hardboil ed eggs , v eg e tab l es , salad l eav e s…

F irs t of a ll prepare the Pane ttone dough, because i t has t o rise f or a long time . Mix the two types o f flour w ith the sugar ; heap them up on the work surface and form a “well ” in the centre . Dissolve the yeas t in th e warm milk and pour i t in t o the we ll . Star t mix ing s l owly , us ing the flour from the outsid e of th e heap , a l i ttle a t a t ime . Add the eggs, the

Ingredients for 1 Panettone: 300 g o f pla in f lour (I tal ian typ e 0 , a l l -pur pose ) 300 g o f plain f l ou r (I ta l ian typ e 00 , f in ely m ill ed)

2 50 ml mi l k 2 eggs 100 g bu t t e r 20 g b r ew er ’ s y eas t 50 g sugar salt

but t er (k ep t out of the fridge f or abou t 20 m inu tes beforehand) cu t in pi eces and the salt , and mix everything t oge ther; then con t inue to knead wi th your hands un ti l the dough i s so f t and smoo th . Pu t it in a bowl , cover with a clo th and leave i t to rise for an hour , keep ing it away from draughts .Now le t ’s m ove on to the f il l ings. For the tuna sau ce : pu t the tuna , capers and Giardiniera v egetab les in th e food pro cess or and blend them , then carefully s tir in the ma y onnaise .For the salm on sauce : blend the salmon with the but ter ( k e p t ou t of the fridge for 20 minutes beforehand) . For the th ird f ill ing : cook the salt cod for 10 minutes in boiling water . Put it on a chopping board and, with the he lp o f a sharp kni fe , remove the skin . Th en , while i t ’s stil l hot , break i t into flak es using a fork . In a bow l , mix it with the lemon juice and r ind , the yogurt , th e gar l i c (put through a garlic crush er ) and th e olive o il . When the sau ce be comes smooth and sof t , almost like a mousse , th e third f illing is ready .For the las t fi lling : bo i l th e prawns in sal ted wa ter ; when th e y are co oked , dra in them and leave them to cool down . Mix the mayonna ise and ke tchup toge th er , and when the prawns have coo led down s tir them in to th is sauc e .Pu t the fillings in the fridge , covered wi th cling f i lm , unti l the “non-Panet t one ” is ready… and n ow le t ’s get bac k to preparing it : af ter th e dough has r isen for the firs t hour , prepare a cylindri ca l cake tin (approx . 15 cm in d iame ter

and 20 cm deep) by greasing it with bu t ter and care fu lly dus ting i t wi th flour . Pu t the dough in i t , cover wi th the clo th again and leav e it to r i s e for ano th er two hours . Wh en it has finished r ising , bake it in a preh ea ted oven , a t 180 °C , for 35-40 minu tes. When the Pane t tone comes ou t of the oven it ’ l l be fan tast ic , so ft , lik e the ones you buy in the shops ! Wait f or it t o c ool down and then remove i t from the ca ke tin . Cu t i t horizon tally in to 8 s li ces, roughly 1 cm thick , plus the “ha t ” ( the rounded top part) and then it ’s ready to be f il led . On the firs t dis c , the bas e , spread the sa l t c od mousse . Pla ce two d is cs on top and spread the salmon sauce on the se cond one . Carry on wi th ano ther two sl ices , the se cond spread with tuna sauce . Con tinue wi th two more , followed by the prawn cock tail , wh ich you w il l th en c over wi th the last remaining d is c . Cu t the Panet tone in t o 4 quar t ers , form ing y our variegated sandwi ches , 4 for ea ch sauce . Finish the tas ty tower b y pu t ting its “ha t ” on . The Panet tone Non-Pane t tone is ready to b e pla ced , proudly , on the table , in al l i ts splendour !

PS : The trick for making th i s recipe turn out we ll is s tar ting ahead o f tim e . Prepare the Pane t tone and fillings the day b e f ore – the former w ill be easier to sli c e , the latter th ic k er and tastier .

<<I Cappelletti in Brodo>>(= Cap p e ll et t i in Bro th)

Ingred i ents for 6 peop le

F or th e fi lling : 300 g v e al 200 g por k 100 g chi ck en b r eas t 2 e ggs 80 g grated Parmigiano c h e es e ½ a carro t ½ an oni on 1 s talk of c el ery 3 tabl esp o on s of extra virg in olive o il salt nutm eg

For t h e bro t h : 500 g muscl e and bris ke t o f b e ef ( o r m ix ed m eats fo r br o th , a c cordin g to tast e ) ½ a ch i cken 1 onion 1 s talk of c e l ery 1 ca rrot 1 tabl espoon o f sa l t 3 l i tr es o f wat er

For the pasta : 500 g plain flour (I ta l ian type 0) 6 eggs 100 g durum wh ea t fl our 1 tablespoon of extra virg in ol ive oi l

Pu t a sau c epan on t o bo il w i th th e wa t er , v eg e tab l es (was h ed cl ean ed and cut int o pi e c es) , m ea t and salt . F or a c l ear e r bro th , us e a skimm er s p o on t o r em ov e t h e “ f r o th ” , wh i c h gradually forms on t h e surfac e wh en i t b eg ins to b oi l ; t h en l eav e t o s imm er ov er a l ow h eat for ar ound 2 h ours . In th e m eanwhil e pr epar e th e fi lling: a f t er cl eaning and was h ing t h em , cu t t h e v eg e ta bl es and th e var ious ty p e s o f m ea t in to pi e c es and sau t é th em t og et h e r in a h eavy- b ot t omed fry in g pan w i th th e o live oil . S ea son wi t h sal t and co ok , s t irring f r om tim e t o tim e . Wh en th e m ea t is coo k ed , ta ke th e pan o f f th e h ea t , l eav e i t to co ol and r emove th e v eg e tab l e s . Min c e th e m ea t o r , i f you hav en ’ t g o t a min c er , b l end it in a f o od pr oc ess or , th en put i t in a b owl . Pour in th e sau c e tha t has formed in t h e bo tt om of th e fry ing pan , s ti r w e l l , add t h e eggs , Parmigian o and nu tm eg . S tir th e mixtur e un til i t ’s smoo th and hom o g en e ous . L eav e it t o res t and m ov e on to pr eparin g t h e “sh e e t ” o f pas ta : pi l e t h e flou r u p on y our wor k sur fa c e and make a “w e ll ” in t h e m iddl e ; br ea k th e e ggs in t o i t , add a pin c h o f sal t and a tab l es p oon of oliv e o il . S t ar t mixing slowly wi th a f or k , and th en us e y our hands un t il y ou ob tain a smoo th , c ompa ct ball . Roll ou t t h e pas ta d ough a s t h in a s you possi b ly can.A f t er you ’v e l e t it r e s t f o r a quar t er of an h ou r , d ip t h e edge of a liqu eur g lass or a co f f e e cup (diam e t er

approx . 5 cm) in f lour and us e i t to cu t disk s ou t o f th e she e t o f pa s ta. W i t h a t easpoon , tak e a small ba l l o f filling and p la c e i t in th e c en t r e o f each dis k . F o ld on e edg e ov e r on top of th e oth e r and pr e ss t h em tog e th er wi th y our f in g e r tips . A t tach th e two ends t og e th e r , f o lding th em downwa rds and backward s , and t h en c lo sing . N ow lif t th e edg e a ll around and y ou ’v e go t a li t tl e “ cap p e llo ” , wh i ch means ha t in I tal i an and giv es t h es e m in i d e li caci es the i r nam e . As you pr epar e th em , p l a c e t h em on your work sur fa c e and sprinkl e th em wi th a bi t o f flour , s o th ey don ’ t sti ck t o g e ther or t o t h e w ork sur fa c e . Fil t e r th e br o th t hr ough a s trainer into an o th e r sau c epan , put it on th e st ov e and , wh en i t com e to t h e b oil , d elica t e ly dr op th e ca pp e l l e t ti into i t and c oo k t h em for 2 o r 3 minu t es . S erv e th em pip ing ho t a c c ompan i ed by a b ow l of grat ed Pa rmigiano R eggian o c h e e s e . Th ey ’ r e hard w o rk to pr epar e , bu t h eav en l y, abs olut ely fi t f or a f ea s t !

<<I Maltagliati al Ragù di Polpo>> (= Mal taglia t i Pasta w i t h O c topus Ragu)

Ingred i ents f or 4/5 p eop l e : 4 small o c t opus e s (app rox . 800 g ) alr eady clean ed 3 s talks o f c el e r y 3 carr o ts 2 on ions 2 sprigs o f pars l e y 50 g cap er s 2 an chovi es 1 small handfu l o f b la c k p ep p erc orns 500 g p e e l e d t oma t o es 5 ta bl esp o ons o f ex tra v irg in oliv e o il sal t and p e pp er 1 ho t ch illi p e pp er (a cc ord ing t o tas t e)

Fo r th e pa s ta : 3 eg gs 300 g flour 1 pin ch o f sa l t 1 ta b l esp o on ex tra vir g in ol iv e oil

Bo i l th e o ct opus es in pl en ty o f sal t ed wa t er , tog e t h er with 1 onion , 1 stal k o f c elery, 1 sprig of parsl ey , 1 carr o t and th e black p epp er corns . In the meanwh ile prepar e t h e pas ta : pu t th e flour on a pastry board or your w ork surfac e , heap i t up and cr ea t e a “we l l ” in t he c entr e , br ea k t h e 3 eggs in to i t , and add a p in ch o f sal t and a tablespo on o f o liv e oil . S tar t mixing slowl y wi th a f or k , and th en us e your hands un ti l th e dough f o rms a smo oth , compa c t ba l l . Roll i t out wi th a roll ing pin ( i t shouldn ’t be too thin) , cu t it into s trips abou t 4 cm wid e and th en cu t th e s tr ips in to irr egular diam ond shapes… “mal tagl iat i ” a c tuall y m eans badly cu t ! Pu t th e Mal taglia t i on a tray or a c hopping b oard , spr ink ling th em wi t h a l i t tl e flour so th e y don ’ t s ti ck tog e th er. Now go ba c k to t h e o c t opuse s : af t er rough l y 40 minu tes t e s t th em wi th a f ork to s e e if t h ey ’r e t end er . Turn t h e h eat o f f and l eav e t h em to c oo l in th e wa ter they wer e c ook ed in ; th en dra in t h em and cut t hem into small pi e c es .F ine l y ch op t h e r emaining v eg e ta b les and sau té t h em in a heav y-bo t t om ed frying pan w i th th e o i l (and th e ch i lli p epper , for thos e who li ke it ) . Af t er 5 or 6 m inu t es add the capers and anchovies . Stir wel l and when ever ything is sau téed and the anchovies have “dissolv ed ” , tip the peeled tomatoes in t o the frying pan and season w i th sa lt and pepper . Mix ev er y th ing toge ther and c ook for 15 minu t es . Now add the p ie ces of o c topus as well , s tir th or oughly and leave to c o ok for ano ther 5 minu tes . Cook the Ma l tag lia ti in p l en ty of bo i ling , sal t ed wa ter for 3 minu tes ; s train them and mix them w i th th e oc topus ragu in the frying pan . Serve ni c e and hot dire c tly in the frying pan .

<<L‘Arista in Salsa di Castagne>> (= Po rk Lo in in Ch estnu t Sau c e)

Ingredients f or 4-5 p eople : 700 g por k loin 300 g c h estnu ts 2 cloves of garli c 2 teaspo ons o f ch es tnu t hon ey 1 gla ss o f d ry whit e win e 2 spr i gs of r os emary 8 tab l espoons of ex tra vi rg in o live oil 1 tab l esp o on of f l our

1 g las s o f v eg e table broth * Sa l t and p e pper

*F o r t h e b r o t h : 1 carr o t 1 stalk o f c e l ery 1 sprig of par s l ey 1 oni on 1 p inc h o f sa l t

The f i rs t th ing to th ink abou t is the vege tab le broth . Put a sau c epan on the s t ove w i th the wa ter , the vege tab les , wash ed and cleaned , and a sma ll p inch of sal t ; leave it to simmer s l owly f or about hal f an hour .

In the meanwhile, cu t a slit in the rounded side of th e ches tnu ts . I f you have the poss i bi li ty , roas t them over a fire in a perforat ed pan ; if no t , in the oven at 200 °C, turning them over from time to time . Af ter roughly 20 m inu tes (ha l f an hour , in the oven) se e if they ’re cooked : if the sk in comes o ff easily i t means tha t the y ’re read y . Tip the ches tnu ts on to a damp c lo th , wrap them up and leave th em like tha t for 10 minu tes , then peel them and put them to one s ide . Tie up the pork loin with k i t chen s tr ing . Crush the clov es o f garl ic w ith a garl i c press or fine ly chop them ; sprin kle the garlic a l l over the por k and season wi th salt and p epper . Ins er t the sprigs of rosemary be tw een the mea t and the s tr ing , one on top , one on the bo t tom . Use a fork t o bea t the o i l and honey t og e ther in a bowl , and pour the mixture in to th e bo t tom o f a ba king pan . Pu t the mea t in as we ll and c oo k it in the oven , a t 180 °C , for about half an hour. Check the pork in the ov en : when the oil beg ins to sizz l e take the dish ou t , pour the whi te wine over the pork , le t i t evap ora te , then use the liquid tha t has f ormed to baste the m ea t . Wh en i t has br owned , turn i t over so tha t it cooks on the o ther s ide . After ha lf an hour , pu t the roas t chestnu ts in the ba king pan as wel l , mix th em we ll wi th the oi l and jui ces and put ba ck in the oven for ano ther 20 m inutes . Then tak e the pan out of th e ov en : the por k shou ld be n ice ly browned . Leave i t on a ch opping board to “res t ” and pour al l the l iquid tha t has formed , along w i th the chestnu ts , into a heavy-b o t tomed frying pan . Add the bro th and the flour (mixed w i th a tablespoon o f broth) , and s immer ov er a moderate heat un t il the sauc e thic kens . Rem ove the s tring from the mea t and sl ic e i t . Pla ce the s lices on a dish and s erve w i th the sauc e , while i t ’s nice and h o t , and the ches tnu ts as a garn i sh .

<<L’Insalata mista di Radicchi>>(= Mix ed Radi c chio Salad)

Ingr edi ents for 4 p eop l e : 150 g r ed rad i c chio 150 g “sugarloaf” radicchio 150 g variegated radicchio 15 gr e en grap es 3 tabl esp o ons of pomegranate grains

50 g sh ell ed walnu ts 50 g ag ed p e c o rin o ch e e s e ½ a l em on , th e jui c e 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive o i l sal t

Divid e the pom egrana t e int o two halv es . Tap on t he ou t er sk in o f on e half with a wooden spoon so tha t the grains fall out (work ov er a bow l or a pla t e , so that the grain s fall on to i t) . T h en pu t t h em in a s train er to dra in . Wash al l the typ es o f radic c hio , cu t t h em int o thin strips and put th em in a larg e bowl tog e ther . Add th e grapes , cut in ha l f (i f you don ’ t lik e th e s e eds r emov e th em wi th th e t ip of a knif e ) , th e grains of pom egrana t e and th e wa lnu ts . B ea t th e oi l , sa lt and l em on juic e tog e th er in a bowl ; p our ov er the salad and mix w e l l . Gra t e th e p e corin o in f lakes and add i t to th e salad , leaving a handful t o one sid e . M ix carefu lly and tip th e sa lad on t o a s erving dish ; b e for e bringing it t o t h e tabl e , garnish wit h th e rema in ing f lak es o f ch e es e .

<<La Cas e t ta di Bis co t t i >>(= The Bis cui t H ou s e )

Ingredi ents f or t h e spong e (f or an appr ox . 40 x 40 cm ba king t in) 500 g of sugar 500 g o f plain f l our 20 eggs 1 sa c h e t o f baking powd e r fo r cak es

f or t h e hous e 2 jars (290 g ea ch ) o f “ La ‘ bria c h ella ” (1 ) 2 jars (200 g ea ch ) o f Viall ella “ fond en t e ” or ano th er g o od quali ty bi t t ersw e e t cho cola t e sp r ead 2 ba gs (500 g each ) of Can tu c c i 1 bag (350 g ) of S trac c i 150 g o f bi t t ersw e e t ch o c ola t e 150 g o f icing su gar

(1 ) “La ‘bria ch ella ” c on tains Vin San t o . I f t h er e ar e c h ildr en among your gu es ts , su bs t i tu t e th e 2 jars of “ La ‘ b riac h e lla” wi th 600 g of Ri c o t ta and add a li t tl e sugar or h on ey ac co rd ing t o tas t e .

Pr epare the Sponge Cake base : in a large bow l , beat the eggs and sugar wi th an ele ctric wh isk un til you obta in a smooth , light mixture . Gradua lly add the flour, s ieved together w ith the baking powder , stirring the mixture slowly from bot tom to top . Pour it into th e baking t in lin ed with greaseproo f paper , level the sur fa ce and bake in a preheated oven , at 180 °C , for 30 m inutes . Af ter this t ime the Sponge Cake will be a nice “biscu it ” colour ; remove it from the ov en and leave it to cool down completely. In the meanwhi l e , in a bowl , mix the Viallel la with “La ‘ briachella ” un ti l you ge t a smooth cream. Wh en the Sponge is co ld , use a sharp kni fe to cut i t in half horizontally. Del ica tely put the “ top ” to on e side , use a spatula to spread the m ixture of Vial l el la and “La ‘briachella ” ev enly on the bottom half , and then put the sponge ba ck together by placing the upper part back on top.Mov e on to bu ild ing the house : break up the b ittersweet choco late and melt it in a ba in-marie. Use a kni fe to cut the ends off the Cantu c c i , so their shap e resembles that of small bricks . Dip the bottom of ea ch b iscu it in the m elt ed cho colate and start to build the house , pla cing one “Cantuccio ” on top o f another ( the chocolate works l ike “cement ” for the bri cks ) . You can choose th e shap e you pr e fer for your “ construct ion ” , Fran ces co – it goes without saying – has recreated the Fattoria ’s “Bottega ” and an c ient oven! When th e walls have been completed , as for any house worthy of resp e ct , you have to build the roof : take the Strac ci (the “tiles ” ) and , laying them on your work surface , join them together at the edges with melted cho co late . Create the roof a ccording to the d imens ions of the house that you ’ve built . When you ’ve f in i shed , leave it to cool down on the work surfa ce wi thout moving i t . Then , very delicately , plac e it on top of the house . If you have some Cantuc ci left ov er , you can use them for a chimney or put them all around the sponge cake base . Now it ’s time to have fun with the decorations – Frances co has chosen a tree and som e lights , to cr eate a warm Christmassy atmosphere . And to round off , dredge th e hous e with icing sugar… a sprinkling of snow at Christmas time is absolutely perfe ct !

<<La Torta di Arance caramellate>>

(= Ca ram el ised Orang e Cak e )

Ingredients for 8/10 people

F or t h e sh or t crus t pas try , for an ap prox . 24 cm diam et e r cake t in : 300 g f l ou r 150 g sugar 1 e gg + 1 yol k 150 g bu tt er ½ an untr eated orange 1 pinc h o f sa l t

For t h e pastry cr eam: 2 egg yolks 2 ta b l espo ons o f f lour 2 tablespoons of sugar 2 glass es o f mi lk jui c e o f ½ an orang e

For t he decora tion on t h e top : 2 oranges 1-2 pinches of cinnamon 200 g sugar 1 glass o f wa t er

Pr epar e th e s hor tcrust pas try : Pi l e th e f l our , s i ev ed wi t h a p inch o f salt , on your wor k surfac e and cr eat e a “wel l ” in i t . In th e c en tr e pu t the so f t en ed but t er (you must tak e i t out o f th e fridg e half an hour befor ehand) cu t in p ie c es , th e egg and t h e extra yolk , the gra t ed p e e l o f th e orange . De l icat e l y mix th e ingredi en t s , firs t wit h a for k and t h en wi th your hand s ( i f p ossib le “ co ld ”) , wi thou t w ork ing th e d ough too much so tha t t h e pastry wil l b e crumbly . Shap e i t int o a bal l , sprinkl e ligh tly wi th flour and pu t i t in t h e fridg e , wrapp ed in c ling fi lm, f or a t leas t half an hour .In t h e m eanwhile prepar e t h e pas tr y cr eam: boi l th e mil k and th en l e t i t cool . In a smal l , deep sau c epan b ea t th e egg y olk s and the sugar w ell ; add t he f lour a li tt l e a t a t im e , s tirring care fu l ly , th en th e jui c e of ½ an orang e and , v ery gradually, the cold mi l k . Put th e saucepan ba ck on t h e s t ov e and k e ep stirring con tinuous ly ; wh en th e pas try cr eam th i ckens lif t i t , s t ir w e ll , put i t ba ck ov er th e h ea t and , jus t b e for e it c omes to t he boil , tak e i t off again . Cov er it w i th cling film and put i t to on e s id e . Take the sh or t cru st pastry ou t of the fridg e and , using a ro ll ing pin , roll i t ou t in to a round shap e r oughly 3 cm larg er in d iamet er than t h e cak e t in . U se your hands to s tr e tc h th e pastry ou t on top o f th e ca ke t in (wh i ch y ou hav e bu t t er ed and flour ed) and l in e bo th bott om and sides . Pri c k i t h ere and th er e wi t h a f o r k and bake in a pr e h ea t ed oven, a t 180 °C , f or 15-20 minu t es . L et i t cool down , remov e i t from th e tin , p la c e i t on a s erv ing dish , pour the pastry cream into it and l ev el th e surfa c e . P e e l bo th t h e oranges comple t e ly (wi th ou t l eav ing th e whi t e p i th ) and cut th em int o sli c es 5 mm t hi c k . Plac e t h em d el i ca t e ly on top o f the pastr y cr eam , slig h t l y ov e rlapp ing , and sprinkle wi th th e c innamon. Pu t th e sugar and wa t er in a small sau c epan ; stir wi th a w h is k un til th e sugar disso lv es and then s tart h eating th e pan . C o ok wi t hout s tirr ing , until the sugar b e com es caramel ised and turns pal e brown . Pour t h e caram e l on t op of th e s l i c es o f orange , l eav e i t to c o o l and…. th e ca ke is r eady !

< <I l Mu l sum > >Ingredien ts : 1 jar o f wildfl ow e r hon ey 1 li tr e o f r ed win e Spi c es a c co rdin g t o tas t e ( c lov es , cinnamon s tick s , p epp er c orns )

Prepar e y ou r Mulsum a t l eas t 8 hours b e fo r e s erv ing it . In a glas s ju g , mix t h e hon e y w i th t h e r ed w in e (p erhaps from our “ar ea ”) s t irrin g unt i l i t disso lv es . N ow add a “bride ’ s v ei l ” o f spi c es (1 ) , cov er t h e jug w i t h a c l o th and put i t s omew h er e cool . Ev ery n ow and again r em emb e r t o stir i t , wi t h a wo oden sp o on , so th e h on e y do esn ’t s e t t l e in th e b o ttom.

(1) A “ brid e ’ s v e i l ” is a coun try- f olks ’ name f or th e l i t tl e ch e es e c lo t h or n e t bag , t i ed up wi th ki t chen str ing , whi c h c on ta ins th e h er bs and/or sp i c es s o tha t t h ey d on ’ t “g o astray ” .